The Veil Sect arrived at dusk.
Three disciples.
One elder.
They did not knock.
The town gathered quickly… too quickly.
Kaida stood near the back of the crowd, arms folded, expression unreadable.
Elder Matsuda's voice carried across the square.
"A cultivation disturbance was reported here."
Eyes shifted toward her immediately.
Of course.
The elder's gaze found her without hesitation.
"Kaida Kurogane."
She stepped forward.
"Yes."
"You sparred with one of our registered disciples."
"Yes."
"You utilized a deviant martial structure."
She held his stare.
"I utilized skill."
A murmur spread.
The elder's expression did not change.
"Demonstrate."
The command wasn't loud.
But it wasn't a request.
Kaida removed her hand wraps slowly.
"You'll test me?"
"I'll evaluate you."
He stepped into the cleared square.
Foundation Late Stage.
Above her.
The townspeople watched with quiet anticipation.
Some hoping she would fail.
Some afraid she wouldn't.
"Begin," he said.
He moved first.
Fast.
His palm glowed with compressed qi.
Kaida stepped diagonally… but this wasn't Taro.
He adjusted mid-motion.
His strike clipped her ribs.
Pain flared sharply.
She rolled with it instead of resisting.
He followed immediately with a downward strike.
She pivoted inside his reach again, forearm deflecting at the joint rather than the hand.
The impact rattled her bones.
She countered with a sharp upward palm toward his chin.
He blocked.
His aura flared, forcing her back.
Raw difference in output.
But he was watching her feet now.
Studying.
Good.
She feinted high.
He guarded high.
She dropped low… sweeping his ankle with a hooked heel.
He staggered half a step.
Just enough.
She drove forward, shoulder into his chest.
The crowd gasped.
For a heartbeat…
She had him off-balance.
Then he released a shockwave burst.
Qi exploded outward.
Kaida was thrown across the square, skidding hard against stone.
Her vision blurred.
The elder approached slowly.
"You see?" he said calmly. "Force decides hierarchy."
She coughed, pushing herself up.
"No," she said.
"It decides fear."
A flicker of irritation crossed his face.
She charged first this time.
Faster than before.
She didn't aim for him.
She aimed for his shadow.
Her foot stepped precisely where his shadow connected to his stance.
Her palm struck downward… not at his body.
At the ground beneath him.
The air compressed strangely.
His aura faltered for a fraction of a second.
Just enough for her to drive a short strike into his diaphragm.
The elder staggered.
Silence.
Then—
He recovered instantly and backhanded her with reinforced qi.
She hit the ground hard.
Didn't rise immediately.
The elder's voice cut through the square.
"This style is destabilizing."
He looked at the town council.
"It mirrors techniques banned after the Divine War."
Kaida forced herself to sit up.
Her ribs burned.
Blood touched her lip.
The elder's gaze was cold.
"You will report to the Veil Sect for assessment."
Not invitation.
Summons.
"And if I refuse?" she asked.
The elder's eyes shifted slightly toward the townspeople.
"Then your town answers for it."
The message was clear.
She wasn't the only one at stake.
The crowd avoided her eyes now.
No one spoke in her defense.
Kaida stood slowly.
Her shadow stretched long behind her in the dying light.
For a brief moment
It didn't align with the elder's.
And he noticed.
His expression changed… only slightly.
Interest.
Danger.
Somewhere far beyond the Vale…
Misaki felt her star current pulse.
Kohaku felt the wind shift direction.
And in the Hollowed Lands—
Something ancient exhaled.